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Aircraft carrier (Red Alert 2)
Aircraft Carriers are massive naval vessels that are essentially floating airfields. Eschewing standard warship armaments in favour of automated aircraft, the aircraft they possess offer them vastly increased range and immense destructive power; though said aircraft are often easy prey for anti-aircraft fire. Background The largest naval vessel in service of the Allied Forces is the aircraft carrier. A fully fledged capital ship, it is the equivalent of the Soviet Dreadnought. In-game unit The ship carries a contingent of three Hornet VTOL attack jets armed with Hornet homing missiles and a specialized industrial plant capable of repairing, rearming and rebuilding the jets. Before launch, the jets are prepared on the launch pad in front of the ship and are deployed according to the orders of the commanding officer. The carrier has no offensive systems of its own and has to rely on supporting vessels to protect it while it is rearming. The Hornets aren't able to inflict as much damage as the missiles fired by Dreadnoughts and Boomers, but unlike the latter two, it uses separate entities in the form of jets to attack and therefore can actually attack moving targets with better precision. Also, unlike the Dreadnought, it can use its Hornets at close range allowing it to participate in direct naval confrontations. Being an attack jet, the Hornet also gives the carrier a longer striking range than the Dreadnought and Boomer's Missiles. However, Hornets require more time to deliver more warheads to the target, given time for refuel, rearm, launch, and return. Downed jets cannot be replaced as easily as a missile. This gives the carrier a severe disadvantage if it loses its aircraft (as a carrier can only replenish one fighter instead of all three fighters, as one wing). Hornet jets count as a unit (contrary to Dreadnought and Boomer's missile). This enables Hornets to gain promotions. However, downed jets are counted as a unit lost. Though intimidating, the carrier could be easily sunk by Typhoon Attack Submarines, Boomers, and Giant Squids, as they lacked anti submarine weaponry. They were also vulnerable to aircraft, as Hornets were bombers incapable of engaging air units; it is wise to protect carriers with AEGIS cruisers to protect them from aircraft and rockets. The Hornets could be easily downed by even the lightest of anti-air weaponry, as they had very weak armour. This was evidenced as Soviet commanders can down the Hornets of a carrier with Flak troopers. However, when large numbers of Aircraft Carriers attacked it was difficult to shoot down all of them; unless large amounts of AA units were present. Game unit The carrier itself does not gain veterancy, but the Hornets do. Aftermath The Aircraft carriers was redesigned by the time of the War of the Three Powers and was upgraded to carry Blackout missiles. Assessment Pros * Immensely strong attack. * Hornets are free of charge and can be constantly replaced with new ones. * Quite durable. * Very dangerous in large numbers since massed Hornets are harder to take down enemy units and structures than the Dreadnought or Boomer missiles. * Truly rivals the Dreadnought and the Boomer. * Its Hornets can actually attack moving targets with better precision than missiles fired by Dreadnoughts and Boomers, making them able to destroy anti air units one by one. * Can use its Hornets at close range, unlike the Dreadnought. * Hornets promote easily, their firepower is greatly increased when elite. Cons * Lacks anti-submarine weaponry. * Even the lightest of anti-air weaponry can easily destroy Hornets. * Expensive. ($2000) * Hornets aren't able to inflict as much damage as the missiles fired by Dreadnoughts and Boomers. * Hornets take a while to return and reload after finishing its bombing run. * Cannot gain any veterancy, only Hornets can. * Lacks of self-repair because of no veterancy promotion. * Vulnerable to sea animals (Dolphins, Squids). * Typhoon Attack Submarines are a threat, since they cannot be attacked by the Hornets. * Cannot attack air. Selected Quotes Note: If Yuri's Revenge is not installed, this unit will use quotes from the Destroyer. Gallery File:5.jpg|Concept art Aircraft Carrier Voxel Render.jpg|Voxel Model Render File:RA2_Aircraft_Carrier_French_Icons.gif|Icon with French text File:RA2_Aircraft_Carrier_Korea_Icons.gif|Icon with Korean text File:RA2_Aircraft_Carrier_China_Icons.jpeg|Icon with Chinese text File:RA2_Alpha_Aircraft_Carrier_Icons.png|Alpha icon Trivia *A modified stock model of USS Tarawa LHA 1 was used for the alpha icon and the final icon is almost the same as the beta cameo, except the bottom of the ship was duplicated to make space for the text. *The in-game aircraft carriers have similarities with "sea-control ship" projects, that were developed in the 1970s. These projects are proposed the cheap, mass-produced aircraft carrier with very small displacement, intended for the use of VTOL planes. *It is possible, but extremely difficult, to promote an Aircraft Carrier all the way to Elite using marine Crates. Difficulties to achieve this include the carrier's slow speed and (sometimes) rank crate rarity. The carrier's sole special bonus when Elite is self-healing. References Category:Red Alert 2 Ships Category:Red Alert 2 Allied Arsenal